Attachment for clotheslines



D. CUNDARI.

ATTACHMENT FOR CLOTHESLINES.

APPLICATION FILED :unz I6, 1919.

Patented Mar. 2, 1920.

a vwewtoz DON/NICK C un'o/mi %1 h when:

UNITED STAES PATENT QFFTCE.

DOMINICK CUNDARI, on NEW YORK, N. Y., AssIGNon or ONE-HALF r0 FRANK PITARO, on NEW YORK, N. Y.

ATTACHMENT non cLornnsLI'NEs.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 2, 19 20.

Application filed June 16, 1919. Serial No. 304,636.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DoMIN-IoK CUNDARI, a subject of the King of Italy, residing at New Yorln-county of New York,- and- State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Attachments for Glotheslines, of which the following is a full, clear, and concise description.

My invention relates to attachments for clothes lines, my more particular purpose being to provide a deviceof this type which may be easily and quickly placed upon the clothes line or removed therefrom, and which while in position upon the line is not easily displaced, and which has sufficient weight to mantain the line taut.

My invention further contemplates a device of the type indicated, made up in such simple form and so cheaply that it may be retailed at a profit in the so-called 'five and ten cents stores.

Reference is made to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specifica tion, and in which like reference characters indicate like parts throughout the several figures.

Figure 1 is a side elevation showing a clothes line equipped with my device, which in this instance is applied to the lower half or bight of the line.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation showing aclothe's line equipped with my device, which in this instance is applied to both the upper and the lower bightsof the line.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of my attach- Inent.

Fig. 4 is a front elevation of the same.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary section, on the line 5''5 of Fig. 4, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows.

A pair of supporting pulleys are shown at 6, 7 and are mounted upon posts or walls 8, 9. Engaging the pulleys 6, 7, is=a clothes line consisting of an upper bight 10-, and a lower bight 1 1. Hung upon the lower bight 11 are garments 12 and my attachment 13, as indicated in Fig. 1.

According to Fig. 2 the upper and lower bights are shown at 14, 15, and my attachment 13 is connected with both of these bights. The garments are shown at 12, 12 the arrangement otherwise being the same as in Fig. 1.

The purpose of my device is to render the clothes line taut so as to prevent the garments from being unduly buffeted around by the wind and thus injured or soiled. My device has just enough weight to maintain the line under sufiicient tension to properly support the garments and prevent the evil mentioned. One or more of my devices may be applied to the line as a whole, or to either bight thereof. As hereinafter explained, I provide means for preventing the attachment from becoming too easily disengaged from the line, as for instance by the action of the wind.

A block 13 made of wood and preferably in a singlepiece is provided with a slot 13, of the form shown more particularly in Fig. 4. Revolubly mounted within this slot are two pulleys 13 13 supported upon cross pintles 13 18. The block has two walls 19, 20, integral with it and bounding the slot 13, as indicated in Fig. 4. The wall- 20 is cut away at its middle portion and thus p'r0- vlded with an opening 21 or mutilation. The wall 20 is further provided with beveled ends 22, .23, bounding this opening.

A latch 24 having the form of a flat longi tudinal strip and made of spring metal, preferably of steel is journaled upon the pintle 13 and normally engages the inner surface of the wall 20, as indicated by full line's in' Fig. 4. The latch 24 carries a wall member 26 secured upon it by a fastening 27 and having suitable form to fit within the opening 21. The wall member 26 normally registers with the adjacent wall 20 and to all intents and purposes may be considered as temporarily a part thereof. The latch 24 is provided with an end portion 25 which extends far enough to overlap the wall 20 at a point beyond the wall member 26, reckoning from the position of the pintle 13 Thus the latch24 has a good bearing upon the inner surface of the wall 20, on both sides oft-he opening Onthis account, and because of the form of the wall member 26 and the manner in which it fits into the" opening 21, the latch 24 will under ordinary normal conditions of use remain fixed in its position indicated by full lines in Fig. 4, and when in use upon the line can not be displaced by the swinging or sliding action of the attachment, when under control of the wind.

The operator by placing his thumb upon the wall member 26 and pressing inwardly can bend the latch 24 as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 4. A recess 28 is provided inthe wall 19 for receiving the end portion 25 of the latch and thus serving as a bearing for the same. With the latch pressed inwardly as just described the operator can shift the latch in a lateral direction as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 5. For this purpose the latch swings upon the pintle 13 as a center. With the latch in the position indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 5 the operator can apply the block to the clothes lines, by passing either one or both bights of the line through the opening 21. This done he swings the latch 24: back into its normal position, meanwhile pressing it inward as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 4, and finally releasing it so that it assumes the position indicated by full lines in Fig. A.

The operation of my device is as follows:

The clothes line being in use as above described, the operator takes one or even two or more of the attachments and applies them as desired in the manner above indicated. He may use one attachment upon a single bight or an attachment upon each bight or two or more attachments upon.a single bight or upon each of the two bights, as desired.

It will be noted that no particular sln'll is needed to enable any person to operate the device and that it is not likely to get out of order or to be the occasion of trouble.

I do not limit myself to the precise mechanism shown, as variations may be made therein without departing from the spirit of mv invention.

I claim 1. A device of the character described comprising a block provided with a slot and with a mutilation merging into such slot, a pair of pullevs journaled within said slot, a latch located within said slot and provided with a member for detachably fitting in said mutilation, and means controllable at the will of the operator for enabling said latch to move in the general plane of said slot and also crossing said general plane of said slot.

2. In a clothes line attachment the combination of a block provided with a slot and with walls bounding said slot, one of said walls being provided with an opening, a pulley mounted within said slot and provided with a surface for engaging a clothes line, a pintle carriedby said block and supporting said pulley, a latch carried in order to admit the clothes line said latch being ournaled upon said pintle and being provided with means for enabling the operator to shift the position of said latch relatively to said block.

3. A device of the character described comprising a block provided with a slot and with an opening merging into said slot, a pair of pintles carried by said block and extending through said slot, pulleys mounted upon said pintles and thus journaled relatively to said block, a latch journaled upon one of said pintles, a closure member mounted upon said latch and shaped to fit into said opening so as to close the same said latch being made of spring metal and thus adapted to bend slightly in order to displace said closure member from said opening, said latch being movable upon said last mentioned pintle as a center.

4. A device of the character described comprising a block provided with a slot and with a pair of oppositelydisposed walls bounding said slot one of said walls having an opening which merges into said slot, a pair of pintles carried by said block and extending through said slot, a pair of pulleys journaled upon said pintles and disposed within said slot, and a latch made of sheet metal and journaled upon one of said pintles, said latch being provided with a closure member for fitting into said open ing. said latch being capable of being turned upon said last mentioned pintle as a center.

5. A device of the character described comprising a block provided with a slot and with walls bounding said slot and disposed upon opposite sides thereof, one of said walls being mutilated so as to form an opening merging into said slot, the other said walls being provided with a recess, a pair of pulleys carried by said block and located within said slot, a member made of sheet metal and journaled within said slot so as to swing in the general plane of said slot, said member of sheet metal having sufiicient flexibility to enable it to be bent in a plane crossing said slot so that it may extend into said recess and a wall member carried by said member of sheet metal for the purpose of fitting into said opening and closing the same.

DOMINICK CUNDARI. 

